In southern China, however, they are called tangyuan or tangtuan.[1] Legend has it that during Yuan Shikai's rule from 1912 to 1916, he disliked the name yuanxiao (元宵) because it sounded identical to "remove Yuan" (袁消), and so he gave orders to change the name to tangyuan.[2] This new moniker literally means "round balls in soup". Tangtuan similarly means "round dumplings in soup". In the two major Chinese dialects of far southern China, Hakka and Cantonese, "tangyuan" is pronounced as tong rhen and tong jyun respectively. The term "tangtuan" (Hakka: tong ton, Cantonese: tong tyun) is not as commonly used in these dialects as tangyuan.

Northern Chinese tend to eat yuanxiao while Southern Chinese eat tangyuan. Both yuanxiao and tangyuan are in the form of a small round dumpling ball made of glutinous rice flour. However, the preference for taste could be different between Northern and Southern Chinese. Sweet fillings, preferred by Southern Chinese, often consist of sugar, sesame, osmanthus flowers, sweet bean paste and sweetened tangerine peel, to name but a few. As for the salty fillings preferred by Northern Chinese, minced meat and vegetables are usually the ingredients.[3] Despite the fact that Yuan Shikai changed the name “yuanxiao,” which people originally consume at Lantern Festival, to “tangyuan” in ancient times, as cited by Yu (2002), they are indeed quite different from each other in the way of preparation.[4] According to Hao (2009), Northern Chinese makes yuanxiao by pinching the fillings into even paste, then placing them into the basket filled with glutinous rice flour, and continuously sprinkling water on the rice flour until the round shape is formed.[5] On the contrary, Hao (2009) also suggested that Southern Chinese make tangyuan by shaping the dough of rice flour into balls with some filling inside.[6]

For many Chinese families in mainland China as well as overseas, tangyuan is usually eaten together with family. The round shape of the balls and the bowls where they are served, come to symbolise the family togetherness.[1]

Nowadays, tangyuan (汤圆) often come in rainbow-like colors, and filled with many flavors such as fruit preserves

While tangyuan was originally a food that people would destroy during festivals, it has become a dessert consumed year-round rather than simply a festival food. For instance, tangyuan is traditionally in white color. Yet, in order to cater to consumers’ needs and changing tastes, dessert specialty shops create new flavors or colors of tangyuan by substituting the traditional filling with chocolate, mashed potato and pumpkin paste. Thus, tangyuan has already evolved into a dessert that is consumed by Chinese from time to time throughout the year and is no longer limited to festivals. In both filled and unfilled tangyuan, the main ingredient is glutinous rice flour. For filled tangyuan, the filling can be either sweet or savoury. Northern variations mix sesame, peanuts, sweet bean paste and place them into bamboo baskets with rice flour, sprinkle water continuously on the rice flour to form the fillings and form round balls. Southern variations are typically larger, and are made by wrapping the filling into sticky rice flour wrapping and scrunching them into balls.[1]

The most notable[why?] varieties come from Ningbo and Wenzhou in Zhejiang Province. However, they are traditionally eaten throughout China.

Tangyuan have also come to be associated with the Winter Solstice and Chinese New Year in various regions. Today, the food is eaten all year round. Mass-produced tangyuan are commonly found in the frozen food section of Asian supermarkets in China and overseas.

In southern Vietnam, a similar dish, called chè xôi nước, is served in a mild, sweet liquid flavoured with grated ginger root. In northern Vietnam, bánh trôi (also called bánh trôi nước) and bánh chay are also very similar, with the latter being served with coconut milk.